As a budget, solo traveller I have to worry
about a few things that simply are not an issue for other types of travellers;
group tours mean you have safety in numbers, plus you are less likely to get
lost, all-inclusive resort holiday goers don’t need to worry about where they
will get food or needing to learn the local language. As a solo traveller with
little money, I must plan, organise and do everything on my own, which I very
much enjoy. It’s not actually all the issues that come with lone, budget travel
that concern me, the main thing I worry about is having regrets when my trip is
over.
I always roughly plan out what I’d like to do
in each of the destinations that I visit, but then I rarely stick to a mapped
out schedule as ‘going with the flow’ allows you to discover hidden gems as you
wander around. On the spare of the moment I have decided to go see a show and
picked up a super cheap ticket, ducked into a little café that looked cute and
had the best cake of my life and taken a wrong turn down a side road and found
the best hidden club in the city.
But due to my limited budget, there’s a
greater chance that I will never return to the country and so, for a lot of my
experiences, it’s really now or never. I don’t want to regret not seeing, doing
or trying something which can mean you put unnecessary pressure on yourself to
enjoy every second. Let me tell you; I’ve tried doing that and that crap is
exhausting! I’ve come home from holidays feeling like I need another holiday
just to unwind from the insane itinerary I had created for myself so as not to
miss out.
Is it possible to travel without regrets and
not feel burnt-out at the end? And is it possible to live without regrets and
still live a responsible life? I’m in a constant battle with these questions as
I feel like I enjoy my life, but that time spent resting,
watching Netflix or even reading a book can feel like a waste of my time when I
know there is so much out there to see and do.
I have come to look at things like this; as
long as what I am doing in that moment makes me happy, it’s not a waste of time
and I shouldn’t regret it. I make sure I give myself a total rest day once a
week whilst travelling where I take a break from walking, discovering
and activities to simply sit, watch TV, sunbath or just recharge. I learnt from
my time spent in Ireland, Greece and Finland that these short days of rest are
super important to allow me to have a busy, action-packed schedule and not
exhaust myself by the end.
The life part is harder. I do have regrets
for my life. I chose a bad relationship over my dreams of travel very early on,
I wasted money, time and energy on people and situations that were adding
nothing positive to my life. However, if I had not done this, I may not have
had the determination to ever strike out on my own, be my own boss and explore
the world by myself. If you live your life with the goal of never regretting
anything, then the chances are you probably won’t do anything! Instead I am
choosing to see my mistakes as necessary lessons that will ultimately make me
wiser. Living with life lessons rather than regrets feels far less self-critical, and recognising that I’m human and won’t be able to physically do two months of nonstop adventure everyday allows me
to actually enjoy my travel without wishing I had done more. Besides, #YOLO really
doesn’t apply to those of us who believe in reincarnation.
Do you have
travel regrets or life lessons? Let me know how you deal with regrets in the
comments and share your tips for overcoming the guilt.
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